Opportunity Overview
Martha Holden Jennings Foundation Open Grants – October 2026 cycle supports projects that make a lasting impact on student learning, teaching, and public education across Ohio. The current 2026 process begins with an eligibility quiz and Letter of Inquiry (LOI), followed by an invitation-only full application.
Funding and Deadlines
Open Grants are typically about $15,000 and have a published range of $4,000-$55,000. Awards are approved for one year. For the October 2026 cycle, the LOI deadline is October 15, 2026. Applicants invited after LOI review have a full-application deadline of October 22, 2026. The controlling Foundation pages do not state a submission clock time or time zone, so Atlas does not infer either.
Eligibility
Eligible applicants include Ohio public school districts; non-religious private schools working in conjunction with public schools; and nonprofit organizations working with Ohio public schools. Prospective applicants must create or use an existing grant-portal account, complete the eligibility quiz, and, if eligible, submit an LOI. Not every LOI advances to a full application. Applicants are generally notified within 2-3 business days whether they are invited to continue.
Priorities and Allowable Costs
Requests are reviewed through the Foundation’s strategic framework advancing teachers and the teaching profession, student learning, and public education. The Foundation does not fund capital improvements or construction, indirect costs, overhead or fringe benefits, endowment or capital campaigns, facility fees, or storage units. Technology, equipment, books, transportation, field trips, curriculum writing, school supplies and similar expenses may be considered only when they are integral to a broader aligned project and are not stand-alone requests.
Match and Sustainability
No mandatory match percentage or fixed cost-share requirement is stated in the controlling public guidance. The Foundation describes itself as a funding partner rather than the sole funder and encourages budgets to identify other funding sources, including school or district contributions, to demonstrate broad support and sustainability. Atlas treats this as a leveraging preference rather than a mandatory match requirement.
Submission Rules and Required Materials
All application steps are completed in the Foundation’s online portal. After an eligible LOI is invited forward, every full grant application must include a signed Letter of Endorsement from a superintendent on district letterhead. An organization working with a public school must also upload a Letter of Endorsement from its Chief Executive. Awardees must complete Proposal Terms and Conditions before funds are distributed, use awarded funds within one year, and submit required educational and financial reports before seeking additional funding.
Strategic Fit
Atlas Opportunity Score: 82/100. This is a verified statewide Ohio education opportunity with recurring funding, clear eligibility, a meaningful award range, and a current open cycle. The staged LOI process and education-specific focus reduce direct healthcare-vendor applicability.
N9+ Fit Score: 34/100, conditional applicant-led. Technology and equipment can be considered only when integral to a broader aligned educational project, so N9+ should not be positioned as a stand-alone purchase. A defensible pathway could exist inside an eligible school-led health-science, medical-career, or instructional project where connected examination technology directly advances learning objectives. Dr. Miltie/QC Healthcare is not a direct eligible applicant; any role would be as an applicant-selected vendor or partner.
Potential Applicant Profile
Greene County Career Center is a realistic eligible profile. Its Health Science Academy teaches health science and technology, medical terminology, patient-centered care and diagnosis, and the school previously received a Martha Holden Jennings Foundation Grants-to-Educators award for a Medical Career Lab. No current application intent, project commitment, or partnership is assumed.
Contact and Controlling Source
Controlling source: Martha Holden Jennings Foundation, Open Grants and Application Deadlines. Grant-system questions may be directed to grantsmanager@mhjf.org or 216-589-5700. No current amendment or addendum notice was identified on the controlling pages.